Restaurants. Dining out.

At Age 110, Schulein's Is One For The Books

The restaurant game is a tough one. Staying in business for 10 years is remarkable. Sticking around for 25 is a conspicuous achievement.

Schulien's recently celebrated its 110th anniversary. That's a number that goes beyond remarkable; I'm not sure what to call that level of longevity.

As it happens, neither does owner Charles Schulien. "That and 30 cents will get you a cup of coffee in Alabama," he says in a good-natured growl.

By way of comparison, the Como Inn is a mere pup of 72. Eli's the Place for Steak is 30. R.J. Grunt's, Rich Melman's first restaurant, is 25.

What keeps a place going for 110 years?

It helps, no doubt, that Schulien's doesn't look its age. The venerable dining room, which stretches along a vintage bar and ends with a couple of squared-off spaces in back, is old-fashioned but spotless. The wood-paneled walls are polished, and the hanging pictures and displayed mementos look dust-free. The fixtures in the restrooms are dated, but they gleam.

And, of course, there are the magicians, which have been part of the Schulien's experience for 80 years, give or take. Magicians work the room, performing a trick here and there; if you wish, notify your waitress and your table will get a 10-minute show at the end of your meal. (There's no charge, but plan on kicking in a $5 or $10 tip if you don't want to look like a piker.)

"That burns the waitresses up," offers Schulien. "They knock themselves out for an hour and a half for a $10 tip, then the magician gets $10 for 10 minutes of magic." Hey, that's show biz.

Schulien's is generally regarded as a German restaurant, but a glance through the menu demonstrates that this is not so. There are plenty of German dishes, certainly, but the bulk of the menu is beef and seafood, and the Schulien's appetizer assortment includes, of all things, an eggroll. This is an American restaurant with German accents.

The meal starts with a welcome old-fashioned touch: a simple relish tray of crispy carrots, celery and radishes is brought to the table, along with a basket of seedless rye bread.

There aren't many appetizers on the menu, and probably that's just as well; entrees are large and include soup or salad, so not much is needed in the way of starters. Perhaps in recognition of this, several appetizers, such as oysters and shrimp, are sold by the piece.

Frankly, we'd skip the oysters and shrimp -- though the oysters Rockefeller isn't half bad, even if the kitchen tops it with bearnaise sauce instead of hollandaise. A far better bet is the hackepeter, ground raw sirloin mixed with chopped onions and capers, spread thickly over rye bread.

Bacon-wrapped scallops are pretty good, though the portion is skimpy (again, you don't need much). Deep-fried calamari is OK.

Another star is the smoked pork chop, a juicy double chop served with red cabbage, sauerkraut and potato salad; one of our friends passed this dish around the table and was lucky to get any back.

Traditional weiner schnitzel is done capably; there's good-quality veal under that fried-batter crust. Thickish spatzel and sweet-sour red cabbage fill out the plate, and there's a fried egg atop the schnitzel, for those of us feeling cholesterol-deprived at this point. Another decent traditional dish is the half-duck, slow-cooked and moist, glazed with orange sauce and served with wild rice.

Prime rib is offered on Saturdays and Sundays only, and it's worth trying. Our order was well trimmed and cooked precisely to order, served with a thickish horseradish sauce and a hefty baked potato.

The choice between soup and salad is an easy one. Soups are hearty and flavorful, judging by the onion, beef barley and split pea versions we tried. The salad is perfunctory by comparison, though the bleu cheese dressing is loaded with cheese and rather good.

None of the desserts is homemade. But the strudel comes from Lutz's Bakery, the ice cream is Homer's and Cheesecakes by JR supplies the cheesecakes, so nothing is likely to be disappointing. The strudel in particular, bursting with juicy apple nuggets, is worth trying.

Schulien's serves eight beers on tap, all of them German imports or American microbrews. Some mass-produced beers are available by the bottle. The wine list is sparse; I expected more than three German wines. But prices are low.

Service is pleasant, though our waitress one night followed an apparent cue from the magicians and pulled a disappearing act for a good portion of the evening. On the whole, though, efficiency reigns here.

History, familiarity, consistency -- all of this goes into the Schulien's formula, and it's a tough formula to quibble with. Factor in that little bit of magic, and it's easy to imagine this place hanging around for, oh, maybe another 110 years.